It's been 2 months today since I first began experiencing double vision. I am encouraged because I've seen tremendous progress since then. I'm still seeing two of everything so that has not changed but many other things have. I focus on that instead of my impaired vision.
The two largest improvements that I've experienced in the past month have involved the use of the patch. I was told in the beginning to switch the patch back and forth giving equal time to exercise both eyes. The example she gave was to patch one for about 4 hours and then switch and do 4 hours on the other. Well, for weeks I was unable to use my bad eye (my left eye has the effected muscle) for no more than 10 min. at a time. And I only patched my good eye when sitting down because I could not navigate while moving with my bad eye. I felt like I was on a ship and everything was off kilter.
So, the first improvement is that I'm able to patch my good eye and use the effected one solely while working and moving around the house! I realized this about a week after I started some homeopathic drops that my Naturopathy doctor recommended. This was such an encouragement to me and I was so glad to be able to share with my friends that I was indeed experiencing some progress! I began wearing my patch mostly on my good eye to build back up the muscle on my left.
The second improvement has occurred within the past 48 hours. I haven't had to use my patch at all except while riding in the car! With the exception of playing Nerts with my girls last night. This is not a game that lends itself to seeing double while trying to win! How can I operate while seeing double? Well, I don't know, I just am. I'm able to focus on one image and sort of block out the other one. If I really need to be careful (like while cooking, or walking down the hallway) I just close one eye for a minute to get my bearings. So if you see me winking at you, I don't really mean to be flirting but am just trying to see.
Many have asked about the prism glasses that I mentioned before also. I think we have decided it would not be worth it to get them at this point in the game. They were an optional aid to help me get by without the patch, but were not going to help me progress any faster. Because my eyes are correcting themselves, I would need to update the prism every so often as needed. I also wonder if they wouldn't slow down my progress because the glasses would be doing the work that my eyes need to relearn to do. The neuro-ophthalmologist told me that the estimated time for recovery is 4-6 months. Why would I spend the money to have glasses for the next 2 months especially if they might only hinder my progress?
So there it is. Your prayers are being felt and I hope the next time I post an update on this, it will be titled "I'm all better!"
Until next time,
Kristin
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